Question about vintage "Mirro" pressure cookers.

[scoots]

In the early 60's my Mom had a Mirro pressure cooker and I was wondering if anybody here had any experience with them... How are they to cook with? Can you still get seals? How's the food's flavor? Does it impair the nutritional value?

I asked her about her personal experiences and (oddly for her) didn't get much of a response. I gather she didn't use it all that often, but then again 50 years is a long time to go back for a casual product review.

I'm thinking about canning applications. I grow a lot of tomatoes and at harvest time, the fruits all seem to come out at the same time and you can only eat so many salads!

 

[norgeway]

Mirro Matic...

My Mother all my Aunts and both Grandmothers used them daily, the Mirro Matic lends itself well to canning because of the 5/10/15 pound pressure weight, I use a small 2 1/2 quart one for about all vegetables, green beans cook with only the water that clings to them after washing in 5 minutes or less,depending on the beans,White half runner beans will cook in 3 minutes, potatoes to mash in 8 to 10 minutes..etc, I cant live without a pressure cooker!..An example of ordinary day to day cooking would be, if I have some thick pork chops, I brown them well , then place on the rack in the cooker , add a can of beef broth, and pressure at 15 pounds for 15 minutes, they are full of flavor and you can cut them with a fork..

 

[rp2813]

I have that exact model and I also have the next newer one.  I use both of them occasionally.   I love cooking artichokes in a pressure cooker.  Fast and easy.  I've also made stews, short ribs, quickly cooked potatoes, and in my giant Presto I've done a pork shoulder wrapped in ti leaves.

 

The model pictured uses a fatter gasket than later types.  As I recall, when I checked on line for a replacement, I couldn't find any.  Most hits brought me to listings for the later type.  As it happens, the gasket that was on the cooker when I found it in a thrift store still makes a good seal.

 

I found another one just like it within a week or so.  Again, the gasket sealed fine.  I gave that one to another member who was local at the time.

 

The first thing I did was test both cookers/gaskets for a positive seal.   I conducted these tests on the side burner of our gas grill outdoors as a safety measure.  When both cookers passed, I brought them inside and added them to the cooking arsenal. 

 

I had an old late '60s avocado 4-quart Mirro that I had given my mom new.  She never used it, so I reclaimed it.  Several years ago it stopped sealing and I bought a new gasket.  It helped, but it didn't last long.  A few years ago I found a stainless version of the same cooker.  Since I tend never to throw anything away that might still serve a purpose (I've gotten better about that than I used to be), I tried the old gasket I had saved from the avocado one in it and it sealed fine.  It turned out that the avocado one must have developed a warp.  I dumped the avocado cooker after making that discovery.

 

So, if your cooker still has its gasket, test it out.  While the original one off the avocado cooker is closing in on 50 years old, it's still making a seal.  Granted, it's low mileage, but in this case old doesn't necessarily mean bad.  At this rate with two spares, I'll never run out of gaskets for that particular cooker.

 

If you locate a source that sells gaskets for your model, be sure and share that information.  I'd like to have a spare on hand just in case.

 

[danemodsandy]

Used Pressure Cookers....

Are risky, because it's difficult to tell if the body and lid of the cooker are in usable, safe condition or not.

If the sealing surfaces of the lid and body are in good shape, without bends or dings, and you see no cracks or dents anywhere, that's certainly a help. But getting an old cooker pressure-tested or Magnafluxed (to detect weak areas and hidden cracks) is not easy. Most pressure cooker experts recommend that used units with an unknown history (yard sale, thrift and estate sale units, for example) not be put back into service.

Mirro does still sell seals, etc., for its older units.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Congratulations on a beautiful pan!

These are very good pressure cookers, but they are more efficient on gas ranges because, like all stamped aluminum, and many "drawn" stainless steel pressure cookers without a thick base, the bottom bulges out as pressure builds, lifting the base of the pan off the element. With a flame, it does not matter.

I love the lines of the cooker. The streamlining of the pan is evocative of speed which, of course, is what a pressure cooker is all about. Our pot roasts were always done in the pressure cooker. Follow the directions and sear meats to a nice rich brown on all sides and you will have a very flavorful roast with rich brown juices

The seals are still available, but the one in it might still be flexible. Mirros are a little wider than Prestos so this is a plus factor when canning. I think that the dome shape of the cover allows 3 pint or half-pint jars to be processed per batch in the 4 qt cooker if you invert the rack. You need at least an 8 quart Mirro Matic to process quart jars.

 

[foraloysius]

Here is the link to the Mirro website:

http://www.mirro.com/

I'm surprised to see that they still sell the oldfashioned type of pressure cooker. Although they say it has a safety system, I don't see something that blocks the handle.
This type is forbidden in Europe I think because of that. Overhere you can only find the more modern type that doesn't allow you to open it when still under pressure with dials and max. pressure control. Much safer!

 

[william637]

My mom used her pressure cooker several times a week

Lima beans were always cooked in the pressure cooker, as well as beef stew. But my favorite was my mom's pressure cooker pot-roast. I will never have pot-roast that good again. My new momma (Momma Deane) can also make a kick-ass pressure cooker pot-roast, but it isn't like my first mom's.

I have three pressure cookers at my house, but they are all electric self contained units. I don't like fussing with keeping the temperature right on the stove. I remember growing up that mom would sometimes run frantically into the kitchen because the stove-top unit was over-pressurizing while she was making pot-roast. To my knowledge, she only blew it once, but boy it made a mess. Lima beans and their cooking water pushed through the little vent opening and all over the stove, range hood, and ceiling.

Risotto cooks in 11 minutes without stirring (and comes out damn good), rice pudding also cooks in about 11 minutes without stirring.

 

[brib68]

My mom had a pressure cooker when i was young. I'm 99.9% sure she still has it, although I haven't seen it lately--but haven't looked, either. I guess it was a Mirro...I think it looked different from the one in the pic above, but that little round thing that sits on top and rattles is exactly as I remember.

To my recollection, mom never used hers for cooking; only for canning.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Louis, the model pictured is from the early 60s.

 

[norgeway]

Common sense..

Is the main thing when using a pressure cooker, My Folks never had problems because 1, we never fill them more than 2/3 full, and 2, we never cook the things not reccomended in the instruction book..One of my Aunts thought she new more than the book, and several times she ended up painting the kitchen!!! when that plug blows out it makes a hell of a mess, especially with something like greens in it!!As to the safety of the older cookers, my opinion is if you force the lid open while there is still pressure inside, you dont have any business with one in the first place, and with the type gasket on a Mirro Matic, its impossible to open with any pressure in it anyway, the v gasket locks the lid.

 

[foraloysius]

Tom

I meant the models on their website.

 

[petek]

Love my pressure cookers however I would NOT use one that old because it lacks the blowout safety plugs that are mandatory nowadays. It's just not worth the risk imo

 

[rp2813]

The one pictured does have a safety plug.  It's visible to the right of the center vent.  I would not use a cooker so old that it didn't have a safety plug.

 

The subject cooker is a nice size for taller items because of the higher lid.  The next models Mirro came out with had flatter lids.  That's why I have one of each.

 

Here's a picture of mine after I first got it, and before I shined it up like new.  The safety plug is clearly visible.

 

[firedome]

We have the big Mirro Matic...

for processing the garden vegs, especially large qualtities of tomato sauce and sauerkraut. Not sure about the actual quart capacity, but it's about 14" wide and 17" tall. We've been using it for about 40 years now, the 5/10/15 lb weight system is pretty simple, essentially foolproof, and safe. There were times back in the '70s when the family was big that we'd do 40 jars of green beans in a day.

 

[whirlcool]

We have one we bought NIB on Ebay from 1961 and paid $35.00 for it.

Yes, blow out plugs and gasket replacements are readily available. The best place to look is your local hardware store. Most of the ones I know will carry parts for Mirromatics as they were called.

And remember, for the best taste in your pressure cooked food, brown your meat well before adding the cooking liquid. This is where the flavor is formed.

The only thing I don't like about Mirro cookers is that they are all aluminum. Which means no dishwashing in the dishwasher. I find they are a PITA to clean after use.Our next PC will be SS and DW ready.

We haven't had a pressure cooking thread in a long time. Usually they are filled with stories of people who wouldn't have one of these "monsters" in their homes.
They have "heard stories" where the top two floors of a house took off and landed in a parking lot 100 miles away! My crazy sister is one of those, even though she grew up with one operating in the house without incident. She said she heard that if you eat food from one of these it will give you cancer. Jeesh!

 

[wiskybill]

1947 Hotpoint Pressure Saucepan

I found this NIB a few years ago at Goodwill for $5.

It's so shiny and new that I can't bring myself to use it, but I
would not hesitate to use it if I had to. The gasket is flexible
and just like new and it does have a safety plug plus
an extra new one included.

I have three stove-top and two electric, Presto and Mirro, that I use
at times so I think this will remain in the box for now.

 

[cuffs054]

I use my older Mirro all the time. Always check gasket and other safety stuff. It does a great job on dried beans.

 

[rp2813]

I stand corrected

It appears gaskets for the older Mirros are still available, but per one site they are all after market as Mirro no longer produces them.

 

My cooker is a model M394, aka M0394 or 0394M on some sites.  Gaskets range in price from $11 to $14 depending on the source.  Be thankful you have the weight.  I saw one listed for $37.

 

[whirlcool]

Gasket care

I have found that if we haven't used our pressure cooker in some time OR if we are using a new gasket for the first time we soak the gasket in hot water first, then dry it off and apply a very light coating of olive oil to it before installing it in the pressure cooker lid. It will seal every time afterwards.

And always wash the seal really well with dish detergent after every use.